“Cloud Storage” for Your Small Businesses

Cloud, cloud, cloud – it’s all about the cloud! In fact, we have just launched a cloud solution to help Small and Medium sized businesses better manage their BlackBerry® devices – the free BlackBerry Management Center. But what does all of this cloud talk really mean to businesses like yours? My guess is that you use cloud solutions every day – maybe you have been for years – but just haven’t necessarily been referring to them as ‘cloud’. Does your business use webmail? Cloud. What about an integrated voice mail system accessed from your mobile device? Cloud. Online payment services, again – cloud. Internet banking, you got it – cloud. The list goes on.

We thought it might be good to start some dialogue around the concept of ‘cloud’ and what it means to you in your work life. We are open to ideas (send them in or use the comments!) but ‘cloud storage’ seemed like a good place to start.*

Businesses, regardless of size or focus, need to have a secure, reliable and easily accessible storage solution for all of their important data. Oftentimes this information needs to be stored centrally so that groups of people, both internal and external to your company, can access them. This is probably even more relevant in today’s “total mobility and wireless work from anywhere at any time-ability.” (I’m thinking that I will coin that phrase!)
There are loads of solutions out there today to meet these needs, from complex backup systems to lightweight, software-as-a-service (SaaS) offers. Given this post focuses on the ‘Cloud and Small Business,’ I thought I would run through a great new ‘sign up and go’ service with a particularly good offer for BlackBerry users.

Box.net is a storage, collaboration, and workflow tool geared towards small business needs. Box.net is designed to allow businesses to share files and get necessary approvals from clients. They can access and check the status of the data from virtually anywhere their day takes them, as well as assign tasks and add comments as needed. Administrative controls are easy to assign and can be done on the fly.

For a limited time, Box.net is offering 50GB of storage free (a value of $20/month!) to BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet owners. Download the Box.net application for the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet between September 7, 2011 and December 31, 2011 and sign in or register to receive 50 GB free storage Make sure that you don’t miss out! To check out all of the details and take advantage of this promotion, head over to www.box.net/playbook. Once you’re up and running with a box.net account and app on your BlackBerry PlayBook tablet, I think you can consider yourself an official user of ‘the cloud’.

Do you currently use a cloud storage solution at your company? Beyond straight storage, what do you do with them?

* By posting a comment below you acknowledge that you have read and accept these terms and conditions and that any ideas you post will be the property of RIM in accordance with these terms and conditions.

About Marcy D.

Marcy joined Research In Motion® (RIM®) in 2005 and has been involved in marketing to SMB ever since. Prior to RIM, all of her work experience was in small businesses and startups, both working for and consulting with. Marcy knows firsthand the joys and tribulations faced by small business owners and employees, and hope to share the BlackBerry® solution message to make the experience better for them.

Inside BlackBerry for Business

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